Mediaeval Chester
The site of Chester had several of those attributes
which made for the growth of an important mediaeval trading centre. Its position in a bend of the Dee rendered
it easily defensible; it lay on the natural highway connecting the midlands of England with the Irish Sea and Ireland;
it stood at the last practicable crossing of a navigable river. When a bridge and fortifications had been erected,
it was certain that a town would rise. When that town assumed the character of a border fortress, became the centre
of government of a county palatine, and the seat of a great monastery, it was bound to attain some importance.
It is not surprising, therefore, that Domesday reveals at Chester a town which, though relatively small, was by
far the largest for many miles, a community with well-defined customs, a port through which trade was conducted
with Ireland. In the succeeding centuries, Chester grew. Directly and indirectly, the Norman Conquest had increased
its political, military and ecclesiastical importance. Its earls were not unmindful of its commercial development.
Its market and annual fair rapidly rose in importance, and a monk of St. Werburgh's abbey, writing about 1200 left
an interesting account of the town in his day. The course of the Dee differed a little at that date from its present
course, and the Roodeye was washed daily by the tide.
The river. abounded with fish,' and to the port came ships from Aquitaine, Spain, Ireland and Germany, bearing
wine and other merchandise. The market, held in the middle of the town, received large supplies of goods especially
of food, and men brought articles for sale from long distances .The English brought corn, the Welsh brought cattle
and meat, the Irish brought fish,
Chester held the keys of Ireland, and travelers to and from that land used to rest or wait at the abbey of St.
Werburgh. The region surrounding the town was fertile, and the Welsh, driven by hunger, used to approach this district
of greater plenty, but withdraw, not daring to attack. Meanwhile the growing English interest in the affairs of
Ireland was leading to increased traffic from the Dee estuary across the Irish Sea. As early as 1164, Henry II
assembled ships from Dublin at Chester with a view to crossing the channel,' and although the first English settlers
in Ireland did not start from Chester, the town became and remained throughout the Middle Ages the chief port of
embarkation of troops for Ireland, and was second only to Bristol in the volume of its Irish trade.
A series of charters granted in the twelfth and early thirteenth centuries reflects the growing prosperity both
of the town and the port. The citizens had their gild merchant, the exclusive right of trading in the city, and
various regulations governing business transactions, disputes with Welshmen being specifically mentioned. Other
charters refer to the customs observed in the Chester - Dublin trade in the days of Henry I and confirm and enlarge
the citizens' privilege in their trading relations with Ireland.
It is evident, therefore, that at the opening of the reign of Edward I, Chester had already attained considerable
importance. During the reigns of the three Edwards, it reached its zenith. By the end of the fourteenth century
it had begun to decline.
Progress and decay were alike closely connected with the political history of North Wales. Edward's conquest and
settlement of that land was not wholly advantageous to Chester. Peace and security were welcome, and at first brought
prosperity, but the permanence of the settlement ultimately deprived Chester of its military and political importance.
There was, however, no immediate decline, and certainly no immediate diminution in the care of the city's defences.
The walls were maintained in good condition-their massive masonry astonished Higden and repairs at the castle were
almost. continuous .
But the peace permitted expansion, and the town was spreading beyond the two-mile circumference of its walls. Houses
were built outside the Northgate, across the river in Handbridge, and especially in Foregate Street ; and the city's
bounds extended to Heron Bridge, to Hoole and to Saltney. Outside the walls also stood two hospitals St. John's
for poor people, near the Northgate and St. Giles' for lepers at Boughton.
Within the walls were houses of the Black, White and Grey Friars, the nunnery of St. Mary, and the abbey of St.
Werburgh. In addition to the area occupied by the buildings and offices of these religious houses, the town also
contained a number of houses and shops belonging to the abbot of St. Werburgh's, to the prioress of St. Mary's,
to the abbot of Stanlaw (Whalley) and the abbot of Vale Royal. The power of the church, therefore, was great, but
not greater than was common in mediaeval towns.
The internal history of Chester at this period has been written by the late Canon Morris. It is, however, desirable
to consider certain aspects of the city from an angle rather different from that taken by Canon Morris. In particular,
it is necessary to study the economic position of Chester in respect of supplies, in relation to the great abbey
of St. Werburgh, and finally in relation to maritime trade.As a market town of considerable importance, Chester
needed supplies of food, fuel and miscellaneous merchandise. Situated in the border land, she could procure supplies
as easily from Wales as from England, while the Dee enabled her to obtain goods readily from overseas. Of flesh
meat there was no dearth in the immediate neighborhood . The citizens had common of pasture for their cattle on
Hoole Heath at all times of the year, and cattle were brought from Wales in times of war as well as of peace. The
Cheshire forests, moreover, provided pannage for many pigs sheep were fairly numerous at the monastic granges,
and small cheeses were made in the county.
Corn, on the other hand, was not so plentiful. Wheat, barley, oats and rye were of course grown in the county,
and wheat for seed was sold in Chester, but it was necessary to import corn from Ireland and from England, and
imported corn was subject to a toll at the city gate.
Fish was very plentiful. All along the Dee there were fisheries, and salmon were abundant. Several religious houses
had fishing boats on the Dee, and the farm of the fishery of Dee bridge was very valuable.' The monks of St. Werburgh's
abbey had also fishing rights round Anglesey' and in the sea around the Isle of Man," and a good deal of fish
was brought into the port in private boats. Tolls were levied at all the city gates on fish, and the lists include
herrings, salmon, ray, oysters, whelks and eels.
Finally, supplies of beer were brewed in the town Quantities of wine were imported from Gascony; the abbot perfected
his domestic arrangements by the laying of a water conduit along the highway from Newton's well to the abbey (1278),
and plums, pears, blackberries, nuts, partridges, woodcocks and other birds were found in the surrounding country.
Fuel was not lacking in mediaeval Cheshire. The timber in the royal forests was most carefully preserved, but brushwood
and deadwood from the forests, from Shotwick park and from Loitcoit were sold to dealers. Moreover, the barons
had the right to dispose of deadwood on their own land at will. Since, however, there were no extensive woods in
the immediate neighbourhood of Chester, cartage was an important matter, and when it became necessary to improve
the road surface in the town, funds were raised by a pavage of a halfpenny on every cartload of firewood or coals.
One of the chief sources of supply lay at Kinnerton, where the citizens were granted permission to take timber
and make charcoa.l. Another source was Shotwick park from which a Chester baker bought 10,000 faggots in 1347.
Turves also occur in the lists of tolls at three of the city gates. They were cut in many of the marshy places
in the county, and the abbot of Chester had the right to take thirty cartloads of turf each year from Elton Moss.'
Finally, as the mines of Eulowe were worked more extensively, quantities of "sea coal "were brought into
Chester.'
In addition to fuel and food for the citizens, hay, grass and bedding were brought in for the cattle, and certain
miscellaneous articles for sale or manufacture. As enumerated in the lists of tolls," these articles are not
very numerous or very diverse. The lists, however, can hardly be complete catalogues of goods entering the city,
for an inquisition in 1321 showed that certain goods should be exempt from tolls; and further, the lists include
such comprehensive items as a "horseload of merchandise of any kind." On the other hand, life was rude,
requirements were few, transport was difficult, and manufactured articles were made within the city rather than
brought from a distance. The recognisances made before the mayor reveal sales of wine, wool, cloth and grain. Salt,
of course, was needed. It came in at the East-gate and was measured for purposes of toll by the crannock and the
bushel. Knives, spoons, and a few other finished articles in iron and lead were brought. There were also dishes,
earthenware, ropes and cords, baskets, bows and bow sticks, skins and furs and sacks of wool. Further, there were
the materials-chiefly of wood-needed for the building and repair of houses, the making of vehicles, agricultural
implements and horse-gear. In this class are nails, boards, posts, laths, fellies, spokes, cart-wheels, cart-yokes,
ox-bows, axle-trees, cart-saddles, etc. Finally there was bark (for the tanners) which came into the port' as well
as from the Cheshire forests.
As already stated, these lists do not necessarily represent all classes of goods coming into Chester. Doubtless
a greater diversity was to be seen at the annual fair held for three days at the feast of St. John the Baptist.
The right to hold this fair had been granted by Earl Hugh Lupus to the abbey. Earl Randle Gernons in confirming
the right, had permitted the erection of traders' booths in front of the abbey gate, and allowed the monks to make
these booths and let them for hire. Traders were forbidden to buy or sell anything anywhere else during the time
of the fair, and the abbot had ample powers to enforce his rights. He had also certain tolls which included the
following For every :-
Horse sold - 4d.
ox, sold - 2d.
5 sheep, sold 1d.
3 pigs , sold - 4d.
sack of wool sold - 4d.
payment of the tolls on the animals (but not on the wool) being divided equally between the seller and the buyer.
He had, moreover, tolls on food and merchandise sold, and to increase his revenue still further, the unloading
or selling of goods from ships entering the port during the fair was restricted-
It is evident, therefore, that the abbey had a powerful influence in the economic life of the city. Since the abbot
took the tolls, his interest lay in enlarging the fair. Since, however, he had a monopoly of the sales, the citizens
might justly contend that the fair would be of greater advantage to the city, if the citizens had greater freedom
in selling their goods. This conflict of interests led to an appeal to Edward I, who ordered an inquiry into the
whole situation.' In 1288, a settlement was reached by which the citizens were allowed to erect booths for themselves
and for hire, provided they were away from the open space in front of the abbey gate. The abbot further conceded
the right of stallage in fair time to the citizens for 46s. 8d. a year.
These concessions enabled the monks to escape the odium which necessarily fell on all who hindered the economic
progress of the city. The existence of the abbey was not wholly advantageous to the city. The annual fair was beneficial
to the city's trade, but it is certain that had there been no abbey in Chester, the citizens would have secured
the right to hold a fair of their own at an earlier date than they secured this limited control. The large area
occupied by the abbey - almost a quarter of the space within the city walls - remained outside the authority of
The mayor and corporation down to the Reformation. The abbey, moreover, was wealthy and influential. It was in
a position to render the Crown valuable service, and to look for valuable favours in return. Its independence was
advanced in 1345 when it secured exemption from episcopal jurisdiction. Enjoying ample revenues and lucrative rights,
having its own mills,' its own court, and its own postern gate in the city walls, it had a prestige and power which
the municipality was obliged to respect
That serious conflicts were infrequent at a time when the fetters of monastic privilege were keenly resented, is
probably due to the character of the abbots, to the fact that the earl of Chester was king of England (or prince
of Wales), and to the fact that the abbey's estates, though near to Chester, were not actually contiguous to the
city boundaries. There had been conflicts between the monks and citizens during the years 1258-1265, and there
were occasional disputes during the period under consideration, but for the most part, contemporary records afford
little evidence of the recurrent, bitter hostility exhibited elsewhere between cities and monastic bodies. Hospitality
was maintained on a considerable scale, and the production of the mystery plays must have brought some measure
of goodwill to the monks. In the fourteenth century neither the abbots nor the monks were austere, and if their
manner of life commanded less esteem, it made fraternal relations with the citizens easier. An episcopal visitation
in 1323 revealed a condition which, while hardly scandalous, was nevertheless far from the monastic ideal. The
abbot was too busy to hear confessions. The monks were keeping hunting dogs. Two of the monks had been guilty of
incontinence and a third was suspected. There had been some trickery or collusion in the distribution of alms and
there was considerable slackness in the discipline. Such a condition in a monastery was not uncommon in the fourteenth
century, and probably the laity were not greatly scandalised.
In the succeeding half century the internal life of the abbey degenerated still further, but while its moral prestige
waned, its wealth remained undiminished. Its great revenues were regularly collected, its tenants were kept in
subjection, its abbots busied themselves with the development of their estates, and the great institution remained
a powerful influence in the city's and indeed the county's economic life.
But the day had passed when a monastery represented the only great accumulation of wealth within a mediaeval city.
Trade was already an important source of wealth, and a moneyed class was rising into great prominence in the city
and county. Dealers in wool, dealers in wheat or in wine, speculators in the minerals of North Wales had little
of the dignity attaching to the abbot, but some of them wielded a powerful influence in the trade of the period.
Conspicuous among these wealthy citizens stands Richard the Engineer, a supervisor of royal works in North Wales
and Cheshire, and lessee of the proverbially lucrative Dee mills. Before the Welsh wars began, Richard had paid
£140 a year for the mills (1275), a clause in his agreement indemnifying him against liability for loss resulting
from any Welsh attack on the mills. After the war, he secured a grant of the mills and fishery (of Dee bridge)
at a rent of £200 a year, and he continued paying this high figure - twice the farm of the city - for twenty
years. Another wealthy citizen was Bartholomew of Northenden, who paid no less than £243 6s. 8d.- the highest
price paid in the fourteenth century - for the farm of the Dee mills and fishery in 1347 .
Still another and more famous citizen was William of Doncaster, a merchant, ship owner and army contractor of very
varied activities. In 1295 his agents were buying wine in Gascony for sale in Chester and Anglesey From 1304 he
was importing large quantities into Chester and at times supplying the king. In the early years of the fourteenth
century he was also engaged in the wool trade, exporting sacks from Chester,' and sending wool across country to
Ipswich and thence to Flanders. At the same time he was dealing in Ireland, apparently in corn. He was also interested
in the mineral deposits of North Wales, farming the lead mines of Englefield, and supplying lead for the roofing
of Chester Castle. In 1307 he was engaged in a big deal in horse shoes and nails with the king. In 1308 he was
collector of the custom of two shillings a tun on imported wine in the ports of Chester, Denwall, Conway, Beaumaris
and Carnarvon, and although he had been convicted of introducing bad money in 1300 he was made searcher of money
"in the same ports in 1311
The wealth acquired in these varied activities raised him to eminence. He purchased or leased land in Rhuddlan,
in Overton, in Mostyn, and he was mayor of Chester three times. Trading by land and by sea, interested in the newly
settled Wales rather than in England, Doncaster stands out a vivid illustration of the city's activities during
the period of its greatest prosperity.
This prosperity rested in a large measure on the activities of the port. Many English seaports at this period were
flourishing as a result of the expansion of trade with the continent and especially with Flanders. For this trade
the position of Chester was disadvantageous. It faced away from Europe. Its hinterland was poor. The county produced
comparatively little wool, and Edward III prohibited its export from Chester. The port had no connection with the
Hanseatic league, and it saw very little of the activities of the Italian merchants. Nevertheless, the port was
not idle, for it enjoyed a considerable share of the trade and traffic of the Irish Sea. It will be convenient,
therefore, to consider the general condition of shipping in this sea before we treat the port of Chester in detail.
The Irish Sea during the period under consideration bore much less traffic than the North Sea or the English Channel,
but it is not without interest, for the movements of its shipping reflect in a large measure certain dominant phases
both of English commerce and of English efforts towards political expansion. In the first place, there was the
east-west traffic between Irish ports and the western ports of England and Wales. This traffic, though comparatively
small in peace time, was repeatedly augmented by political or military circumstances. The importation of Irish
corn at Chester during the Welsh wars has already been mentioned. A further and larger illustration may be drawn
from the years 1296-1298 when the king's memories of the Welsh rising of 1294-1295 must still have been vivid,
and his interests were deeply engaged both in Gasconv and in Scotland. For the maintenance of the great castles
of North Wales, wheat and oats were shipped from Dublin, Drogheda, Ross, Lusk and Heswall, the vessels used including
the "St. Mary" of Haverford, the "Sauneye 'of Dublin, the "Mariot" of Chester, the "Catherine"
of Hereford, the "Mariot" of Dundalk and the Michael" of Heswall For his expedition to Scotland,
Edward ordered the transport from Ireland to Skinburness (for Carlisle) of 10,000 quarters of oats, 8,000 quarters
of wheat, 500 carcases of salt beef, 1,000o fat pigs and other goods. A still further illustration of military
policy rendering busy the quiet waters will be dealt with later.
In the second place. there was the trade with Gascony. Probably every port in the Irish Sea engaged in some measure
in the wine trade and some may have imported salt also from Guienne. In return, corn was sent to Gasconv, and in
the critical years mentioned above (1296-1298), quantities of wheat were shipped from Ireland in the "Holy
Cross "of Waterford. the "Holy Cross of Cork, the "Nicholas" of Lynn, the "Ave Maria"
of Drogheda and the "Gaudyer of Dublin.
Thirdly, there was the miscellaneous coasting traffic and this too, like the other classes, was increased by war.
In 1281-1282, for example, the " Mary" of Lynn was plying along the North Wales coast, and Edward was
conveying men between Anglesey and Rhuddlan.
The size of the vessels engaged for these various purposes may, to some extent, be conjectured from the cargoes
they carried. They were not the largest ships of the period. Those carrying corn from Ireland brought about 220
quarters and one carried 400 quarters. We shall see ships in the Gascony trade bringing cargoes of from 70 to 100
tuns of 'vine to the Dee.' Respecting their tonnage, letters patent of 1363 ordered the arrest of all ships of
20 tons burden and upwards in certain western ports, and similar letters in the following year refer to all ships
of from 30 to 80 tons burden." That there were smaller vessels sailing the Irish Sea is certain, and an order
of 1394 ordered the seizure of all vessels of 10 tons and upwards in the ports between Holyhead and Furness
These small boats ran great risks. In addition to the perils of tempests which drove the master mariners to seek
some sheltering haven, the Irish Sea presented several dangers. The shallow waters around Anglesey were difficult
for navigation. Higden even mentions a whirlpool in the Menai Strait. Moreover, prior to the Edwardian settlement
of Wales, wrecking had been a custom of the Welsh, and the English efforts to suppress it raised bitter complaints.
Further, piracy was common. The Irish Sea was less infested with robbers than the North Sea and English Channel,
but the typical English sailor, as pictured by Chaucer, was unscrupulous enough when occasion served, and indeed
there were at least two incidents in which Chester men were indicted for plundering at sea. One is the case of
Robert de Bradburn, master of the Nicholas" of Chester, who, with other masters and sailors, boarded a vessel
off the Lizard and carried off a valuable cargo.
The other occurred in the Western Hebrides where a band of Chester men seized twenty tuns of wine belonging to
the King of Scotland at a time when England and Scotland were at peace.
Apart from piracy, unexpected hostility might be met. In 1322. eight Chester merchants (among whom was the famous
William of Doncaster) chartered a ship, La Nicholas" of Lymington, to carry wine from Bordeaux to Chester.
With a cargo of 105 tuns and 7 pipes, the vessel touched at " Le Stanhous" in Anglesey. Here it was inspected
by the chamberlain of North Wales, and for some reason that is not explained, the chamberlain's men attacked the
sailors. In a panic they put out to sea, but were driven back by a tempest, whereupon the chamberlain and his men
renewed the attack, raised the hue and cry, killed two of the crew, and injured five others so that they died of
their wounds. Again the boat put out to sea, and this time it was driven by the storm into " parts unknown."
Part of the cargo was lost and the remainder had suffered deterioration before the vessel finally reached safety.
Such an episode may have been rare. That it could occur at all is a reminder of the risks run by merchants and
mariners in the Irish Sea. A final illustration may be seen in a request by the earl of Pembroke for a certain
writ. " As there is danger in the passage to Ireland," the petition runs, "he prays that the king's
writ may be issued in duplicate so that one attorney may cross over from Chester and the other from Pembroke."
We have now noticed very briefly the broader aspects of trade and traffic in the Irish Sea, and may proceed to
consider the port of Chester. That its importance at this period was secondary to that of Bristol may be conceded.
That it never attained the importance of many of the ports on the east or south coasts is, of course, certain.
Its remoteness from the busy commercial life of the North Sea and English Channel made its growth more distinctively
English, for neither Hansard nor Lombard had any direct connection with the port. On the other hand, this very
remoteness limited its development. The customs system of the fourteenth century directed the movement of English
exports into definite channels, and since the exports were mainly destined for continental markets, it was natural
that Chester should be omitted from the list of ports where staple commodities were concentrated. In 1302 the chamberlain
of Chester accounted for £19 1s. 8d. as custom on the export of "27 lasts, 4 dickers, 2 hides, 1 sack
of wool and 563 lambs' fleeces."' This was a comparatively small quantity, but from 1303 onwards, the typical
English products - wools, wool fells and hides - were not exported from Chester at all. The chamberlain reported
each year that his receipts from the custom of wool and hides were nil ' because the liberty of the cocket is not
yet obtained from the Lord the King in this county." And although as the century advanced, various changes
were made in the list of staple towns, Chester did not gain the privilege of exporting these goods.
It is, however, possible that small quantities of wool were smuggled out of the port. The fact that there was no
cocket seal at Chester must have led some merchants to seek to escape the payment of custom by shipping their wool
there. Letters close of 1343 state that " several merchants have bought wool in divers counties of England
... and they take such wool to Wales, Cornwall and Chester to load there without paying the custom and subsidy
to the king. A letter patent
of the same date brings to light a specific instance. Two burgesses were said to have hidden 200 sacks of wool
in the town of Hereford, "which wool the said James and Peter are trying to carry to Wales or Chester and
thence take clandestinely to foreign parts without paying the custom and subsidy due." What degree of success
attended such efforts at smuggling cannot be determined, but the exclusion of Chester from the list of staple ports
must have hindered the prosperity of the port.
Deprived of its share in the export of wool, the port's activities must be explained by reference to Ireland and
to Gascony. The nature and extent of the Irish trade has not yet been fully investigated. The marten skins mentioned
in Domesday are well known, but few modern writers have anything definite to say about the Dublin - Chester trade
in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Mrs. Green, one of the more specific on this subject, refers to the
export from Ireland to Chester of cloth -" friezes and serges, cloth white and red, russet and green."
Other writers refer to merchants travelling to and from Ireland, but do not mention any commodities. Nor are medieval
writers very precise. William of Malmesbury stated that" necessaries are exchanged between Chester and Ireland,
so that deficiency in any one article due to the character of the soil, is made good by the labour of the merchant."'
The three Chester monastic writers are almost equally vague. Lucian and Higden mention merely fish and merchandise,
and Bradshaw apparently only quoted his predecessors. The writer of the Libel of English Policy goes into details
of Irish products in the fifteenth century -hides, skins, fish,. woollen and linen cloth - but does not state specifically
that any of them were imported at Chester.
A study of sources on the English side tends to show that the most important commodity received from Ireland was
not fish, nor cloth, but corn. Whenever famine or extraordinary consumption caused a dearth of corn in Cheshire
or North Wales, merchants and monks alike turned to Ireland for supplies. The large quantities of wheat and oats
brought into the port of Chester and the Dee estuary during the Welsh wars have already been mentioned. The importation
of Irish corn had been encouraged by a charter of Walter de Lasci (1202-1231), granting the citizens of Chester
licence to trade in corn and grain and flour at Drogheda and all other ports in his lands in Ireland, and withdrawing
the toll of 2d. a crannock which he had previously exacted.
The importation continued during the five years' peace between the two Welsh wars, and was a prominent feature
in the life of the port during the reign of Edward II, while an inquisition of 1309 showed that Irish merchants
had also taken ships laden with corn to the little river port of Frodsham Thus in 1316 John Demestre of Chester
obtained a safe conduct for a year for the purpose of importing Irish corn, and in the same year a number of Chester
merchants went to Ireland on the earl's behalf to buy up to 200 quarters of wheat. In 1321 two merchants, William
of Basingwerk and Madoc of Capenhurst, sought protection for their agents who were sent to purchase 200 quarters
of corn, and in 1322 the earl himself sent servants to buy "corn and other dead stock" in Ireland and
North Wales.. The difficulties under which buyers of corn laboured are illustrated by the lot of a Chester merchant
who, having obtained a quantity of wheat, had to give up thirty crannocks to the king's purveyors to be sent to
Scotland.
During the reign of Edward III the Irish corn trade appears to be of much less importance, but at the end of the
fourteenth century a period of scarcity again necessitated importation, and in 1400 orders were sent to Ireland
for too quarters of wheat, 60 quarters of oats and 30 quarters of peas, for consumption in Cheshire and the castles
of North Wales.
It is a more difficult task to discover what mediaeval Chester exported to Ireland. Chester merchants settled in
Dublin at an early date, and in the middle of the thirteenth century the names of several of them are found on
the rolls of the Dublin gild merchant, and the roll of the free citizens of Dublin. During the reigns of the three
Edwards, the greater Chester merchants such as William of Doncaster had their agents in Ireland, and merchants
from Dublin and Drogheda came to Chester. Miscellaneous entries record the movement of live bucks and does from
the Cheshire forest to a royal park in Ireland, or the transfer of some oxen and sheep, but for the most part the
goods exported, like the goods imported, are described generally as "merchandise." Higden says quite
briefly that Ireland loves to get England's minerals and salt. On the whole, it is probable that Chester received
a greater quantity of goods from Ireland than she sent back.
Apart altogether from trade, however, the increasing interest in Irish affairs displayed by the English crown was
leading to an increased traffic between Chester and Dublin which was advantageous to the ship owners .
From the early years of the reign of Edward III, ships were frequently assembled in the Dee for the conveyance
of officials and their retinues, and not infrequently for the transport of men-at-arms and even horses. For example,
in 1331 the chancellor of Ireland sailed from Chester. In 1332 boats were collected at Whitehaven, Holyhead, Tenby
and Chester for the transport of troops and victuals to Ireland. In 1337 six ships were ordered for the conveyance
of a new chancellor and various ministers.' There were similar orders in 1341 and 1356,' and the operations of
Lionel, duke of Clarence, from 1361 onwards caused a large demand for shipping in the ports of Chester and Liverpool.
Ships were impressed both in Ireland and England, and some hundreds of troops and reinforcements with horses and
harness were despatched.' Minor operations in the later years of the reign" and in the reign of Richard II
kept the port busy with Irish traffic down to the end of the fourteenth century.
Next in importance to trade and traffic with Ireland came the trade with Bordeaux. Before the end of the thirteenth
century, large quantities of wine were being imported into England from Gascony. Since both producers and consumers
were subjects of the crown, the trade enjoyed royal approval. As its dimensions grew, regulations were drawn up
which were designed to facilitate the trade, protect the merchant, and prevent excessive charges both in respect
of middlemen and in cost of transport. Cargoes of wine were brought into the port of Chester throughout the period
under consideration, the volume of business increasing as the fourteenth century advanced. The port became a depot
from which wine was distributed not only to the palatine county, but to Lancashire and North Wales .
The ships used in this trade were almost exclusively English or Irish, but a large proportion of them belonged
to ports other than Chester. They usually reached Chester in October, November or early December. Some sailed direct
from Bordeaux without touching at any port on the way. Others put in at Milford or Cork or Dublin. The former,
of course, paid prisage at Chester; the latter paid at the first port at which they touched, and obtained a certificate
of payment to present to the earl's officials at Chester. This system of forwarding a certificate or letters acknowledging
the receipt of prise probably worked fairly well, but it was not without difficulties. Occasionally, a merchant
complained that payment was exacted twice and not infrequently when the forwarding of his certificate was delayed,
he had to enter into a recognisance for certain sums in the event of the certificate not arriving or proving unsatisfactory
to the officials in charge.
In some instances the size of the cargo or the cost of freight is stated. Thus in March, 1303-1304, a ship of William
of Doncaster brought into the port 70 tuns of wine, 50 of which belonged to the earl of Lincoln and 20 to various
merchants. In 1322 the " Nicholas" of Lymington sailed for Chester with no less than 105 tuns and 7 pipes.
In 1402 the "Michael "of Dublin carded 67 tuns. The rates charged by a Chester shipowner for carriage
in the "Trinity" of Ottermouth in 1395 were as follows :-
Bordeaux to Waterford . 14s. per tun.
Dublin . . . 15s
Beaumaris 18s
Chester . . 18s
In the same year the "Leonard" of Portsmouth was chartered to carry 78 casks from Bordeaux to Beaumaris
or Chester at 18s. per tun The rates varied from time to time, dropping as low as 12s. or even 10s. per tun and
rising to 20s. per tun.
That some of the wine which came to Chester was of high quality is clear. While in Gascony, prior to his coronation,
Edward I sent some wines to Chester. During his Welsh campaigns further quantities were bought for him and sent
to Chester. But a safer indication of quality lies in the time of importation and the value per tun. Many of the
wine ships reached Chester in the autumn, immediately after the vintage. The liquor they carried was inferior to
the "wines of rack" which were shipped in the spring. When, therefore, Edward I learned that a vessel
had reached Chester containing "good, choice and clear wines of rack," he ordered his justice to secure
40 casks if they really were good, choice and clear, and to keep them safely in the royal cellars till otherwise
ordered. This higher quality of wine is referred to again in 1320 when the "Holirodecogge" reached Chester
"in July, in the Reck-time." The two tuns of wine of prisage taken from this ship at the standard rate
of 20s. per tun, were afterwards sold back to the ship-owner at 80s. a tun a high price for the period.
The importation of wine was, therefore, a very prominent feature in the trade of Chester in the fourteenth century.
Bordeaux was the most distant port to which the Chester sailors voyaged, and Chester was, as a rule, the most northern
point on the west coast to which wine ships came. The activities of the port in normal times were almost confined
to trade with Ireland and Gascony, and since some of the wine ships belonged to Dublin, and others touched sometimes
at Irish ports, the tow chief branches of Chester's maritime trade cannot be wholly separated.
The remaining trade was mainly with the towns of North Wales - with Rhuddlan, Carnarvon, Conway and Beaumaris.
Millstones and corn were brought from Anglesey, slates from Ogwen, lead from the Isle of Man .While Edward I was
at Rhuddlan, venison was sent to him from Chester by water.
Finally, military operations in Scotland in the fourteenth century brought activity to the port. The conveyance
of men-at-arms and horses for operations in Ireland has already been noted. During the Scotch wars, Chester furnished
ships for the transport of provisions. Large quantities of corn, wine, bacon, salt and horse shoes were sent to
Skinburness in Cumberland in 1308 and 1310. Two ships fully armed and provisioned were requisitioned in 1311, and
further quantities of provisions were sent to Carlisle in 1318 and to Skinburness in 1333.
The total volume of business arising from the various branches of Chester's maritime trade must have been less
than that enjoyed by several ports on the east and south coasts. In the absence of the "Customs Entry Books"
for the fourteenth century, it is impossible to make any accurate comparison or even to illustrate in detail the
customs levied in the port of Chester. They present a certain complexity , for it is necessary to distinguish three
authorities collecting different duties in different areas, in the first place, the king (after 1303) levied a
duty of two shillings a tun on imported wines. The second duty was levied by the earl of Chester who took his prise
of two tuns from each cargo of wine entering the port. Lastly, there were certain dues claimed by the citizens
of Chester.
The official appointed to collect the two shillings per tun on imported wine was responsible for this duty not
only at Chester, but in all the ports of North Wales. This grouping of a series of ports was merely an administrative
device for the collection of revenue. The whole coast-line of England and Wales had been "divided into sections
in each of which was a chief port and member ports." In this instance, however, it would be erroneous to suppose
that there was any subordination of the Welsh ports to Chester or any definition of the extent of the port of Chester.
Indeed, the stretch of coast-line in which the official operated varied from time to time. Sometimes it was "Chester,
Denwall, Conway, Beaumaris and Carnarvon"; sometimes "Chester and all ports in North Wales"; sometimes
" Chester and the adjacent ports," while at times it included South Wales and even Ireland.
In a more limited area the chamberlain was responsible for the earls prisage . There appears to be no explicit
definition of the extent of the port of Chester, but there are grounds for believing that in the fourteenth century
the port was conceived to extend the length of the estuary, thus including the lesser ports in Wirral. The citizens
had certain admiralty powers between Chester and Arnold's Eye, a point at the limit of the estuary.' Freights from
Bordeaux to Chester were quoted to the Redbank , a point far down the estuary. Many of the ships from which prise
was taken were said to be "in the port at the Redbank." A similar ship was said to be "in the port
at Burton," and in one instance, the wine of prisage from " a ship called the 'Naudeu of Dartmouth discharged
in the port of Chester." was taken at Heswall.
In a still more limited area the citizens had their dues. In answer to a quo warranto of the later part of the
fourteenth century, the mayor and citizens claimed the right to levy certain duties on any ship " entering
the aforesaid liberty laden with wine, herrings, fish, salmon, grain or any other merchandise or food."
Now the liberty of Chester extended down the river to Poolbridge near Saltney. It is evident, therefore, that any
deterioration of the river channel which prevented ships from sailing up the river, at least as far as Poolbridge,
would not only hinder the trade of the city but also lessen its tolls.
We have already referred to the use of Burton, Heswall and the Redbank as illustrating the extent of the port of
Chester. This use of the estuary ports had a deeper significance: access to the city itself by water was becoming
more and more difficult. Many of the vessels were discharging their cargoes of wine, six, eight or even twelve
miles down the stream without coming up to Chester. The wine of prisage taken at the estuary ports was brought
up to Chester by smaller boats. Probably the bulk of the cargo was brought up in the same way. Nor is the wine
exceptional; other heavy cargoes were discharged at a distance down the stream or transferred to smaller boats.
Slates for Chester castle, for example, were brought by sea from Ogwen. unloaded at Shotwick, and carted to Chester
(1357 -1358). Millstones for the Dee mills were brought from Anglesey by water to Burton" (1357-1358), and
in 1373, when transport was needed for an Irish expedition, orders were issued for the ships to be assembled at
Burton.' It would probably be erroneous to infer that in the late fourteenth century no seagoing vessels came up
to Chester. There were probably seasonal high tides on which vessels might still reach the city, but it is clear
that at that date, Chester's decline had already begun.
The cause of this decline - the silting of the Dee estuary - is well known, but the process has not yet received
detailed historical treatment. The process presents no novelty, but only the gradual choking of a channel which
for many years must have presented difficulties for navigation. In the course of centuries the river's channel
has changed in position, in depth and in width. At the time of the Roman occupation, the river flowed near the
position of the Watergate. At the end of the twelfth century, the Roodee was covered daily by the tide, and even
in the early fourteenth century, the river flowed so near the city walls that vessels were moored to rings in the
walls of the Water Tower. By the middle of the fifteenth century, the condition of the channel was such that sea-going
vessels could not approach within twelve miles of the city.
The silting which had thus ruined the port was due primarily to the normal deposition of sediment in the estuary,
a process accentuated by the tidal current which checked the river current. A secondary cause lay in the fact that
erosion was taking place both on the shores of the estuary and on the sea front. For example, at Gronant in Flintshire,
certain lands were leased by the Dean and Chapter of St. Asaph from the Black Prince, a clause in the indenture
stipulating that an allowance of 12d. a year should be made for every acre which might be wasted by the sea. That
the danger referred to was real, may be inferred from the fact that several commissions were appointed to assess
the damage suffered from time to time by the lands at this spot. Tidal currents, therefore, brought sand into the
estuary, and ebbing more slowly than they flowed, left deposits which gradually accumulated. Moreover, the work
of nature was accelerated by the work of man, for the great causeway at Chester robbed the river of the swirl which
might have carried the sediment further out.
The forces at work were fairly well understood by the citizens - at any rate in the fifteenth and subsequent centuries.
Letters patent of 1445 quoting a petition from the mayor and citizens, stated that "for forty years now the
great flow of water at the said port . . . is taken away from the said harbour by the wreck of sea sand so that
the said harbour is wholly destroyed . . no merchant ship can approach within twelve miles and more of the said
city." Similar letters in 1484 attribute the choking to" the wreck of sea sands daily falling and increasing
in the channel," and a letter of 1486 refers to" the vehement inflow of the sea . . . the vehement influx
of sand and silting up of gravel." In recognition of the declining prosperity of the city, the king reduced
the fee farm from £100 to £50, then to £30, and finally to £20.
The same letters, however, state that at the time the fee farm of the city was fixed at £100 (namely, 1300
). "and long after, there was a good harbour to the said city." It is evident, therefore, that whatever
the exact position of this ' harbour " may have been, the fourteenth century represents the latest period
when the navigation of the Dee was practicable for sea-going ships. It is probable that the climatic stress of
this century accelerated the silting it is possible that changes in the channel rendered navigation more difficult
it is possible that in the next century vessels of deeper draught were sailing the Irish Sea. It is certain that
after the close of the fourteenth century, Cheater's importance as a seaport was negligible.
The position of Chester, as we have already noted, had almost all the natural advantages which made for the rise
of a mediaeval town, and during the centuries of its eminence, it suffered little material loss. Border towns like
Carlisle and Berwick might fall into the hands of enemies, but the Welsh never captured Chester. Border seaports
like Winchelsea and Rye might suffer burning at the hands of foes, but Chester remained undamaged. Nevertheless,
further growth was unlikely, for natural advantages are relative to the condition of human beings, and some advantages
are not permanent. The advantages which accrued from the Dee as a highway of commerce steadily diminished. The
military and political importance of the town was rapidly vanishing. It would remain a market for a large area,
but that area was comparatively poor and unpopulous . No great woolen industry had been established ; no great
increase in wool production was likely .In short, at the close of our period it had already reached and passed
the zenith of its mediaeval greatness .
